The Sound of Crickets – What Most Enjoy Hearing

Crickets. I’ve always kind of enjoyed the sound they make on a summer night. It’s comforting. It represents silence and maybe “acceptance” of the here and now. But if it’s facts or information you might be spewing from your pie hole to warn others of a bit of danger ahead – the sound of crickets typically indicates hardly a soul is paying a damn bit of attention to anything you’re saying:

The Vital Congressional Hearing on the Endless War That Probably Nobody Watched:- Via commondreams.org

Taking “an important step towards a long overdue debate and vote,” a bipartisan congressional hearing Tuesday afternoon put a spotlight on what is often dubbed a “blank check for war”—the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF).

For over 16 years—a time period spanning the George W. Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations—the executive branch has leaned on that AUMF to justify wars across the world—from the Philippines to Afghanistan, Yemen, and Somalia—in the name of defeating supposed terrorist organizations, without prior congressional approval.

“We cannot afford to wait any longer while these wars expand. For too long, Congress has ignored our duties on these ongoing wars,” said meeting co-chair Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) at the start of the hearing.

Rep. Lee, it should be noted, was the sole member of Congress to vote against the AUMF, which was passed in the wake of the Sept. 11 attack.

The “2001 AUMF has become a blank check for any president to wage war anytime, anywhere, anyplace without the consent or oversight of Congress,” she continued.

Of course you’ve heard about all this, right? I mean, it’s been non-stop coverage of it by the corporate media, online mainstream sites, local news and major news outlets…right?

And more crickets from the disinterested crowd – Check out how the Pentagon dishes out our tax dollars:

Of Lockheed Martin’s $51 billion in sales last year, nearly 70 percent, or $35.2 billion, came from sales to the U.S. government. It’s a colossal figure, hard to comprehend. – via theWashingtonPost.com

But don’t feel bad for the other military industrial corporate giants. Boeing secured a mere $26.5 billion in taxpayer dollars and Halliburton, General Dynamics, Raytheon and others are overjoyed of how their cups runneth over:

The recent budget plans have brought joy to the hearts of one group of needy Americans: the top executives of major weapons contractors like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and General Dynamics. They expect a bonanza from the skyrocketing Pentagon expenditures. Don’t be surprised if the CEOs of these five firms give themselves nice salary boosts, something to truly justify their work, rather than the paltry $96 million they drew as a group in 2016 (the most recent year for which full statistics are available). from Russia-Insider.com via tomdispatch.com

Wars, bombings, killing, murder, regime change…it’s all a big and profitable business that so few care about. More crickets…yet we’re talking about lives being extinguished here. I sometimes wonder if Americans have loved ones, children, grandchildren, lovers, friends or anyone else in their lives that they actually give a shyte about.

The skewed priorities in Trump’s latest budget proposal are fueled in part by the administration’s decision to embrace the Pentagon increases Congress agreed to last month, while tossing that body’s latest decisions on non-military spending out the window. Although Congress is likely to rein in the administration’s most extreme proposals, the figures are stark indeed — a proposed cut of $120 billion in the domestic spending levels both parties agreed to. The biggest reductions include a 41% cut in funding for diplomacy and foreign aid; a 36% cut in funding for energy and the environment; and a 35% cut in housing and community development. And that’s just the beginning. The Trump administration is also preparing to launch full-scale assaults on food stamps, Medicaid, and Medicare. It’s war on everything except the U.S. military.

And lastly…

Earlier this month, Rep. Bob Goodlatte [R-VA-6] introduced H.R.4760 – Securing America’s Future Act of 2018, a sweeping bill that entails everything from Education and the Workforce to Homeland Security to the military. Also, tucked away in this 400-page behemoth of a bill are the details of a new biometric National ID card that could soon be required for everyone.

Not surprisingly, there is almost no media coverage on this legislation.

H.R. 4760 establishes a mandatory National Identification system that requires all Americans to carry a government-approved ID containing “biometric features.” Without this card, according to the legislation, you will not be able to work in this country. – via thefreethoughtproject.com

Absolutely frightening! Yet…most seem to prefer this, than rising up and screaming, “NO” to these psychopath’s and their continued nightmares they heap upon us, sledging us all through Hell before any of us even get there.

“The notion that a radical is one who hates his country is naïve and usually idiotic. He is, more likely, one who likes his country more than the rest of us, and is thus more disturbed than the rest of us when he sees it debauched. He is not a bad citizen turning to crime; he is a good citizen driven to despair.”― H.L. Mencken